A safe bet

Who’d Have Thought

G Benson

Who’d have thought it would be a romance?

(Hint: everyone)

I have mixed feelings about this book. When I pick it up I thought it was going to be a standard chick-lit romance. I was ready for it. Then BOOM Benson introduced Samantha Thompson. The best neurosurgeon in NY states, but she is also a woman who don’t know how to navigate social standards and social expectations. The way  Benson describe Sam, the way she acts, makes me pretty certain that she wasn’t neurodivergent, and maybe this was a story of someone on the autism spectrum. I was over the moon. My expectations for the story hiked up. A reality so under-represented was brought into the bright light. AWESOME.

Turns out I was wrong. Sam IS neurotypical. While the reasons why she is how she is and acts the way she is, are logical and reasonable, they are less epic than my hope. I left me with a sad aftertaste. Of course, Benson is not at fault for my personal hope, it just felt like a wasted opportunity.

The core of the plot - fake marriage trope- starts in a classic way. Then again my expectations went up (Benson writing is so good you always think they’ll be a pioneer and dare). The plotline choice is original, only to later fall back on a classic choice and a clichéd ending.

One minor character deserves a mention. LUCE. They are Hayden’s (the second main character) best friend and they are non-binary. Meaning that they don’t identify as either male or female, using gender-neutral pronouns. Benson didn’t disappoint me there. The way Luce is written is clever and spot on.

So overall Who’d Have Thought wasn’t a bad book by a long shot. It’s just that while reading I saw some hints that it could have been exceptional. Even groundbreaking  - unfortunately, it didn’t deliver on that hope.

If you want to read a Rom-Com/Chick-Lit this is a good choice.

YLVA ARC REVIEW

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